Anyone Interested in an Interfaith Interview?

[Spirit of Light]

Thank you for joining the discussion! I obviously, don't have a complete understanding of Islam, would mind elaborating how Sufi's differ from other branches of Islam and why you were drawn towards sufi'ism?

Sufism are an esoteric path within Islam, meaning that the focus are turned toward the heart and to become as pure as possible filled with unconditional love to all beings and to Allah.
This way a sufi seeks the unity with Allah

 

[TransmutingSoul]

thank you again tony this is awesome for the development of my assignment. You mentioned earlier that your religion was a sort of branch of Islam but I'm not seeing the correlation. Do you have a main source of scripture or text that you study or adhere to? the Bahai faith sounds a little like how i understand unitarianism, in short, "all paths lead to god." Am I misunderstanding it?

Thanks for the question DaChew. Those questions are enormous indeed.

The Baha'i Faith has grown from Islam the same way Christianity grew from Judaism. You are correct in saying all paths lead to God, from a Christian persepetive we see that Baha'u'llah (Glory of God) is the one promised by Jesus the Christ. The forerunner was the Bab (Gate), or Elijah who always comes first.

The is over 100 volumes of writings given just by Baha'u'llah, the Kitab-i-aqdas (Book of Laws) and the Kitab-i-Iqan (Book of Certitude) are seen as two very important works.

A lot of translated writings can be sourced at this link.

Bahá’í Reference Library | The Bahá’í Faith

All the best and may it all be good for you.

Regards Tony

 

[firedragon]

I am a student taking a world religions course, and my assignment is to ask someone of a different religion from me some questions. I am not here to argue, fight or convert anyone, I simply want to learn. I am and a Christian and would love to speak with the Muslim community.
Here are the questions if you are interested in answering some or all of them.

How did you come to practice your religion?

What aspect of your religion gives you the greatest comfort? Why?

What aspects of your religion are the most important to you? Why?

What element in your religion do you find to be troubling? What if anything brings you doubt? Why?

How does your religion better the world we live in?

How do you live out your religious beliefs each day?

How do you share your religion to unbelievers?

Why should I become a follower of your religion?

Thank you in advance!

1. I was born into a Muslim family.
2. Because the God is coherent with natural theology.
3. Ethics.
4. Ahadith. Because non-muslims seem to believe ahadith more than Muslims themselves, and their apologetics bothered me when I was quite young.
5. Because it gives objective morality.
6. Following the ethics.
7. I write.
8. Because it is coherent with natural theology and its consistency.

Honoured.

 

[SalixIncendium]

I would love to hear a little more about these "mystical experiences." if they shaped your current worldview and set you on your path they must be pretty central to how you constructed your faith. If you could also elaborate on Sand that would be awesome, I've never heard of that.

My first such experience occurred when I was somewhere around 13 or perhaps a bit younger.

My step-father was a plastering contractor, and on weekends and during the summer I used to work as a laborer on job sites in Chicago (we lived about 60 miles NW of the city, so the drive each day was at least and hour and a half, adding to that days where we would need to pick up materials).

One morning while sitting in traffic on the Kennedy Expressway, I experienced a shift in perception that is quite difficult to describe with words. Everything I was looking at out the window suddenly became intimately familiar, the cars, the streets, the landscape the buildings, the El, the people out walking, etc., more familiar than to me than my own hand. It not only felt like it was a part of me, but more like it was me. The shift only lasted for a moment or two, but it was certainly a different perception than I had ever experiences previously.

For years, I dismissed this as some sort of anomaly, until I read about others who had similar experiences. I began to learn more about non-dual or "oneness" experiences, which led me to contemplate and meditate on this, and seek out whatever information I could find on them. Which segues perfectly into SAND.

"Science And Nonduality (SAND) is a community inspired by timeless wisdom, informed by cutting-edge science, and grounded in direct experience. We come together to explore the big questions of life while celebrating the mystery of being."

Here's a bit more about them in you're truly interested: Mission - SAND

 

[DaChew]

1. I was born into a Muslim family.
2. Because the God is coherent with natural theology.
3. Ethics.
4. Ahadith. Because non-muslims seem to believe ahadith more than Muslims themselves, and their apologetics bothered me when I was quite young.
5. Because it gives objective morality.
6. Following the ethics.
7. I write.
8. Because it is coherent with natural theology and its consistency.

Honoured.

can you elaborate on natural theology?

 

[DaChew]

Thank you all so much!!! This was an incredible experience! I have great content for my essay! if you would like to continue chatting I will check in at least once a day for a short while.

 

[firedragon]

can you elaborate on natural theology?

Natural theology is arguments for theology without banking on scripture as in "theology is true because my book says so" or/and other means like "I know God exists because he spoke to me this morning".

The term may have come up in the late 18th century or the early 19th century but natural theology has been part of philosophy for a long time taking many colours, and especially in the Islamic discourse since anyone could follow.

 

[viole]

How did you come to practice your religion?

I used to be a Christian. As far as I remember I came to practice that because I was born in a Christian environment. If I were born in Ancient Greece, I would have worshipped Apollo, instead.

What aspect of your religion gives you the greatest comfort? Why?

I am an Atheist. And I do not find it particularly comfortable. It is not uncomfortable, either. I do not choose my beliefs according to comfort, in general.

What aspects of your religion are the most important to you? Why?

I can sleep until 11 AM every single Sunday. And I do not need to fast on Fridays, since I abhor fish.

What element in your religion do you find to be troubling? What if anything brings you doubt? Why?

That is like asking me if I doubt my garden being infested by garden fairies. Who knows? Maybe it is. But it does not keep me awake at night.

How does your religion better the world we live in?

In Sweden less than 20% still believe in a personal God. And we rate very high in terms of life quality. However, I am not sure whether we are happy because we stopped believing in God, or we stopped believing in God because we are happy.

How do you live out your religious beliefs each day?

I knee every night by my bed and recite the Einstein field equations and verses from Darwin's Origin of Species.

How do you share your religion to unbelievers?

I post here, and other places, to people still victim of that ancient superstition

Why should I become a follower of your religion?

Because atheists are known for being fun, sexy, handsome and smart.

Ciao

- viole

 

[Secret Chief]

Because atheists are known for being fun, sexy, handsome and smart.

That's got to be a small sample size.

 

[Bear Wild]

I am a student taking a world religions course, and my assignment is to ask someone of a different religion from me some questions. I am not here to argue, fight or convert anyone, I simply want to learn. I am and a Christian and would love to speak with the Muslim community.
Here are the questions if you are interested in answering some or all of them.



Thank you in advance!

Welcome to the forum and thank you for asking

Pagan path

How did you come to practice your religion?
After a journey exploring religions finally finding one that had true meaning for me.


What aspect of your religion gives you the greatest comfort? Why?

My pagan path connects intimately with all life and the spirits of nature. Profound religious experiences where the everything finally made sense and an unexplainable sense of peace occurred in me finally feeling truly connected to all life.

What aspects of your religion are the most important to you? Why?
It works to protect all life in our world and recognizes what we receive from this world are gifts and equal generosity must be returned. It is working for a kinder world with greater personal responsibility.


What element in your religion do you find to be troubling? What if anything brings you doubt? Why?
The fact that most people do not understand what it is and carry old misconceptions that are false.

How does your religion better the world we live in?
It works to wake us up to our responsibilities to care for each other and our world. It is actively trying to reverse the destructive processes that create our current imbalances in the world.


How do you live out your religious beliefs each day?

I give thanks every day for all this world gives us. I work to support our natural areas to preserve what we have left. I gain wisdom every day from all creatures great and small.

How do you share your religion to unbelievers?
I will share with anyone who wants to know and understand.


Why should I become a follower of your religion?

You should become a follower only if you want to. We are open to anyone who wants to experience the spirituality of our world and live in complete peace within.

That at least is a start. I welcome any questions you may have.

 

[paarsurrey]

How did you come to practice your religion?
My journey into Sufism come through many years as a Buddhist, but when I could not learn more in Buddhism I looked around for a path that could lead to deeper wisdom. and my choice ended up as Sufi

What aspect of your religion gives you the greatest comfort? Why?
Every aspect of the teaching gives me comfort that I am on the right path. I learn and understand something new every day.

What aspects of your religion are the most important to you? Why?
To seek wisdom from within my heart and sharing my love for all humanity, because unconditional love leads to a better society and a better life for all people.

What element in your religion do you find to be troubling? What if anything brings you doubt? Why?
Misrepresentation of Islam in our word is most troubling to me, If I have a doubt I read more in the teaching to clear my doubt

How does your religion better the world we live in?
Sufism is all about giving unconditional love to every living being, hopefully, it brings peace and love to the world.

How do you live out your religious beliefs each day?
Practicing the teaching, speaking about it in RF, speaking with friends.

How do you share your religion with unbelievers?
I try to have a dialog and to not judge them for not being a believer, and to do my best to understand them and why they have no faith in a God.

Why should I become a follower of your religion?
That is fully up to you to decide if you want, there is no force from Sufis that others should become Sufi, but if you find comfort in the teaching you could study before taking the leap to be a part of Sufism it would help you understand more about yourself, and what Sufism is about (realizing God from within)

I appreciate one's thoughts.
Regards

I am an Ahmadiyya peaceful Muslim.

 

[IndigoChild5559]

I am a student taking a world religions course, and my assignment is to ask someone of a different religion from me some questions. I am not here to argue, fight or convert anyone, I simply want to learn. I am and a Christian and would love to speak with the Muslim community.
Here are the questions if you are interested in answering some or all of them.

How did you come to practice your religion?

What aspect of your religion gives you the greatest comfort? Why?

What aspects of your religion are the most important to you? Why?

What element in your religion do you find to be troubling? What if anything brings you doubt? Why?

How does your religion better the world we live in?

How do you live out your religious beliefs each day?

How do you share your religion to unbelievers?

Why should I become a follower of your religion?

Thank you in advance!

Darn. I love being interviewed, but I'm Jewish, not Muslim.